Charles c



(No Model.)

0 O. PRATT.

Whip.

Patented Jan. 4, I88].

Fries.

CHARLES C. PRATT, OF WESTFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

WHIP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 236,357, dated January 4, 1881.

Application filed May 31, 1880.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES C. PRATT, a citizen of the United States, residing at iVestfield, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Whip-Handle Coverings, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the exterior finish or covering applied to whips or whip-handles; and the object thereof is to provide a novel and improved covering for whips of greater durability than anything heretofore known, one which has unusual beauty and strength, and, while affording the above-named advantages, detracts nothing from the requisite elasticity of the stock.

I attain the above-named objects by the use and application of the peculiar exterior covering illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 illustrates the lower portion of a whip having applied to it my improved coverin g. Fig. 2 is a plan view of a strip of said covering.

The whip, previous to the application of my improved covering thereto, is prepared in the same manner as for plaiting or having a cover woven upon it, and it is not essential that the body of the whip be of any material differing from the ordinary rattan or wood stocks.

In the drawings, A represents a whip-stock of the above description, and b c the ordinary butt-trimming and ferrule.

Myimproved covering is entirely metallic, and consists of a thin strip of metal, 1', wound spirally around the stock, as seen in Fig. 1. In Fig. 2 is shown a plan view of a piece of said metallic strip. One end of said strip is fastened in any convenient manner at or near the butt of the whip, and thence is wound around the stock toward its tip, as shown. Of course, in approaching the tip of the whip its diameter decreases, and provision must needs be made for the requisite elasticity of the smaller upper portion of the whip. Therefore I find it preferable to somewhat reduce the width of the metallic strip 1', say above the ferrule 0, although a narrow strip may be wound from the butt up; but the ap- (No model.)

located, and elsewhere where any of the ordinary whip-trimmings will cover said ends. It will be seen that said metallic strip is so wound upon the whip as to cause the edges thereof to lie side by side, so that there is formed thereby a continuous metallic-faced covering upon that part of the whip so wound; but the manner of applying said covering constitutes one which is elastic, and allows the whip to be bent in the usual manner, and to spring back to its straight form. Thus the durability of metal in this construction is taken advantage of without producing any inconvenient results.

In addition to the above advantages may be cited another one, which is quite as important, and that is the wide field which is provided by this construction for greatly varied ornamentation, for,in addition to a metallic covering so applied over an unplaited stock, it may be applied over the plaiting upon a part of the whip or the whip may be finished by alternately applying the metallic and the plaited covering.

The metallic strips which I employ may be made of any suitably ductile metal; but I find that the most beautiful finished effects are produced by covering the lower portion of the whip with a gold-plated metal, either plain or having ornamental figures sunken or raised thereon, as shown, and by covering the upper portion with a silver or nickel plated metal, or in any other fanciful way arranging these or other different metals. By so varying the colors ofthe metallic covering, and adapting thereto suitably-contrasting trimmings b and 0, very beautiful and entirely novel effects may be produced in the finish of whips.

What I claim as my invention isof an ornamental metallic strip or strips wound 1. As an improved article of manufacture, spirally around it, substantially as set forth. a whip having a metallic covering consisting J of a metallic strip or strips Wound spirally GHALLES PRATT 5 around it, substantially as sct forth. In presence of- 2. As an improved article of manufacture, WM. H. GHAPIN, a Whip having a metallic cox'ering consisting l H. E. VVILKINS. 

